This is the first sermon I presented to the church body.
I have observed a lot or preachers and
speakers through the years, so I know that it is standard practice to
begin with a joke or story. However, I’m afraid that I’m like
that fellow Earl told us about a few weeks ago. You remember that
there was a group of men who were so familiar with each other’s
jokes that they told them by number. I’m like the fellow who stood
up and called out #127 and nobody laughed. I just can’t tell a
joke either.
But I like to tell stories. I guess
as a native Mississippian, it’s just bred in me to tell stories. So
today I want to talk about telling stories because I believe that we
all have many stories that need to be told.
I want to start with what may be the
most exciting day of story-telling in recorded history…Pentecost.
The story of Pentecost is told in the second chapter of Acts, and I
encourage you to read the whole chapter to get the full picture. The
story occurs just about seven weeks after Jesus death, and nine days
after his ascension. The apostles were gathered in Jerusalem to pray
and wait. Since the chapter is a little long, we will look at
selected verses, beginning with the first four:
Acts 2: 1-4
“When the day of Pentecost had come,
they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there
came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the
entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire,
appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them
were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other
languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.”
Pentecost was a traditional Jewish Holy
Day. The term Pentecost comes from the Greek word for “fifty”
because it was held on the 50th day after the first day of
Passover. It commemorated the day that the 10 commandments were
revealed to Moses on Mt. Sinai. That day, the city of Jerusalem was
full of Jews from all over the world, speaking many languages. The
people outside that house were amazed and perplexed at what they
heard and a great crowd gathered. They didn’t understand what was
happening.
Verse 14 says that Peter,
standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd,
saying “Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be
known to you, and listen to what I say.”
Peter then began telling them the
Story…the greatest Story…the story of his friend Jesus the
Christ. Peter began his story by recalling the prophecies from Joel.
Like a good storyteller, he was giving his listeners the context.
Then he gives them the heart of the
message beginning in verse 22. “You that are Israelites,
listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to
you by God with deeds of power, wonders and signs that God did
through him among you - as you yourselves know- this man, handed over
to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you
crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. But God
raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible
for him to be held in its power.”
Peter then goes on to show how Jesus
was the fulfillment of the prophecies of David, and was indeed the
Messiah foretold by David.
Peter, inspired by the Holy Spirit, was
a powerful storyteller. He had the crowd right where he wanted them.
How do we know? Skipping to verse 37; “Now when they heard
this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other
apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” So Peter continued
his story and told them what they must do. And on that day, about
3000 persons were added to the band of Christians.
On that day, those devoted followers of
Jesus, with Peter in the lead, were “fired up” about the story
they had to tell. They were so “fired up” about their story, that
they changed the lives of 3000 people that day. They were so “fired
up” about their story that they changed the course of history.
They told a story that was so dynamic and so compelling that we are
still telling it today.
You know, Christianity is built upon
the stories of the birth, the life, the death and the resurrection of
Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, the Christ. But Christianity as a
religious movement, began on that day of Pentecost.
Jesus had promised his followers that
he would send a Holy Spirit to comfort and guide them. On that day
of Pentecost, the Spirit came in a dramatic and powerful fashion,
like a fire, to inspire them. It was the fulfillment of Jesus
promise, and the evidence cannot be denied. It was not a one-shot
deal and they didn’t get “burnt out.” They were so on fire
with their story that they spread it around the world, even at the
cost of their own lives.
The story that Peter told on Pentecost
is our story, too. And as Christians, we can claim the power
of the Holy Spirit to tell it.
We all have many stories to tell. None
are as dramatic or powerful as Peter’s story, but none-the-less,
they are important to tell. Stories connect us to each other and to
our past. Stories even shape our future. We can sometimes get “fired
up” about telling our story, whether it’s about a great game or
the big one that got away or the awful medical procedure we had to
endure. We tell our family stories as a way of passing on who we are.
On this Mother’s Day, we can honor our mothers and foremothers by
telling their stories. We are who we are, each of us, because of our
mothers.
I’d like to tell you the story of
Emily May. Emily May was born in 1838 in what is now Montgomery
County, near Starkville, Miss. (You know that rival school, Miss
State). This was just one year after the removal of the Chickasaw
Indians on their leg of the “Trail of Tears.” At age 16, Emily
married David Mansker. Over the next few years spanning into the
Civil War, she had 3 children and lost one of them. Her husband David
died in Mobile Hospital in 1864, as a result of battle wounds. At
age 26, Emily was a widow with two young children, living in
hard-scrabble, reconstruction Mississippi.
Emily married again at age 32 to
William McLaughlin. They had 3 children, one of whom died. The
first of those McLaughlin children was my great-grandmother, Nellie
Jane McLaughlin, born in 1871. At age 38, Emily was widowed again,
after just 6 years of the 2nd marriage. Alone, she had
four children to raise. They ranged in age from 16 yrs to just 10
months old. Emily had lived barely half her life.
But she must have been a women of great
spirit, because all the women who are her off-spring down through the
generations have been women of great spirit- right down to my
grand-daughters Claire and Amanda Matzek. I have pieced together
Emily May’s story from the fragments in my great-grandmother
Nellie’s diary. But I have one story straight from her
grand-daughter who was my grandmother. My Mamaw (who name was also
named Emily) said that when she was a little girl she loved to visit
grandmother Emily. On one particular visit in the spring, about this
time of year, grandmother Emily’s yard was full of flowers. Mamaw
picked an armful and proudly presented them to her mother. She was
being soundly scolded by her mother for picking the flowers when
grandmother Emily spoke up. “Don’t fuss at that child. Flowers
in the yard are to be enjoyed and picked. The women in our family
have always had flowers in their yards.” And so it has always been
that down through the generations we continue to have flowers in our
yards.
I am fortunate to have known my
great-grandmother, Nellie Jane McLaughlin Farrar. When I knew her,
she lived in a tiny trailer behind my grandmother’s house. Going
on 90, she was too independent, too proud (some would say too
stubborn) to want to live with my grandmother. A visit to her house
always meant a treat of tea-cakes and cold sweet tea. I can taste it
now.
I loved to visit my grandmother –
Emily Lucille Farrar Westmoreland. She was a hard-working woman and
usually to busy to play, but she let us “help.” She was a
gardener who could grow anything, vegetable, fruit or flower. She
also loved to fish and often took us kids along. She taught us to dig
for worms and bait our hooks. She had a great saying that she passed
along to my mother, my sister and me: “To be a lady, a woman must
look like a princess, act like a queen, think like a man, and work
like a dog.” Ladies, you know it’s true!
She had just one child, my mother,
Clara Nelle Westmoreland Taylor. From my mother, I have learned what
it means to be a mother, a wife, a good citizen and a Christian. But
my mother doesn’t just teach with words, she demonstrates with her
life. She is a woman who takes life very seriously, especially when
it comes to having good time. I’m looking forward to her visit in a
few weeks.
Honor your mothers by telling their
stories to your children and grandchildren. Honor your mothers by
listening to their stories.
There is another story that we share
and that we all have to tell. That is the story of our church,
Trinity United Methodist of Lenoir City.
Those of you who have been members much
longer than I remember the many transitions this church building and
congregation have gone through. When I was helping put together
pictures for the church history celebration last fall, I was amazed
at the large number of members, especially the children. Many of you
have been here long enough to notice that the number of folks
participating each Sunday has been declining. We are struggling to
meet our budget needs, and have fallen short.
In response to these concerns, a group
of the administrative board met this winter to study the book “Vital
Signs” by Dan Dick. It presents the findings from a survey of
Methodist churches with the goal of describing what a “vital,”
church looks like. He analyzed over 700 congregations to try to
discover the key elements of a healthy congregation. Two sets of
criteria emerged, growth and sustainability. Growth is
self-explanatory in terms of numbers. But growth can also refer to
the spiritual growth of discipleship. Sustainability is a trickier
concept. Is there a high level of active participation of members?
Is there too much dependence on paid staff to carry on the programs
of the church? How much of the budget is spent on maintenance versus
how much is spent on mission and outreach?
Dick identified four general types of
congregations, though no one church is purely one type.
- The DECAYING church has declining membership and giving. There is a low level of active participation with few active leaders. There is a high dependence on paid staff. The primary focus is inward. The members do not have a clear sense of the purpose or mission of the church. There is an attitude that “We are because we always have been.” About 50% of churches in the survey fell into this category.
- The DYSTROPHIC church has a primary focus on numerical growth – gaining new members. There are lots of programs but most focus on the individual. There is a low level of expectation or accountability for members. About 33% of churches were classified as dystrophic.
- The RETROGRESSIVE church is highly focused on one or two ministries. There is a very high level of expectation/commitment expected and widespread participation by members in the ministries. People are member of this church to do the ministry. There is not a big dependence on staff. These churches may be declining in membership because expectations are so high. They represent only 7% of congregations.
- The VITAL congregation integrates the spiritual and the practical. There is a balance of inward and outward focus. There is a high level of participation of members. Continuing education and spiritual growth are emphasized. About 10% of churches can be classified as vital.
As we discussed these church types, and
how we fit into these categories, we could see elements of each one
in Trinity. We know that we want to be the VITAL congregation, not
the decaying congregation. The fact that we are having this
conversation is evidence of vitality. So that brings us to a turning
point, to the place that crowd found themselves on Pentecost 2000
years ago. Back to Acts, second chapter, verse 37: “Now when they
heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the
other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
Brothers and sisters of Trinity, what
should WE do?
Our little Trinity band believes that
we have a great story to tell about Trinity. Let’s find ways to
tell our story. We are all here because we value who we are. We value
our traditional, liturgical worship. We value inspiring music as a
vital part of that worship experience. We value our children and
youth and show that by providing them with an excellent educational
program. We value spiritual growth and show that by offering a
variety of classes and bible study for adults. We honor our senior
members who can no longer regularly participate in worship and strive
to keep them connected and involved through the Shepherd’s Care
group and children’s activities. We believe in being in active
ministry in our community and in the world and we show that through
community volunteer activities, mission giving and fair share giving.
We have so much good going on. Let’s don’t keep it a secret.
We have a great story to tell about
Trinity,
A story of:
Soul-inspiring music,
Soul-seeking messages,
Soul-enriching education
Soul-comforting fellowship.
So on this Pentecost, let’s get
“fired up” about telling our stories. With the help of God’s
Holy Spirit, we can do it.
Let us pray:
Dear Lord, Thank you for your gift of
the Holy Spirit. May we allow your Spirit to fill us until we are on
fire to tell your stories. Bless and keep us as we go from here.
Amen.
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